Are Heartstopper's Kit Connor & Joe Locke Even Friends in Real Life?

Netflix's Heartstopper, based on a graphic novel by Alice Oseman, who also wrote the screenplay, is not just another YA show. It's an insightful and life-affirming story about love, setting boundaries, and finding your place in the challenging adult life. The highlight of the show is the dynamic of a friendship that grows into a strong, sincere, and trusting love between Charlie and Nick, played by up-and-coming actors Joe Locke and Kit Connor.

For fans, it's incredibly heartwarming to know that the stars who portrayed their favorite characters on screen share a warm friendship in real life too, supporting each other through the difficult journey of growing up.

'They're such a bonded gang in the comic and the scripts… and then you have these actors who are also equally bonded and love each other so much,' the show's executive producer Patrick Walters said.

Locke and Connor, both 19 now, are just beginning their acting journeys, but they are already experiencing the downside of fame — the scrutiny of a public that has a toxic disregard for personal boundaries. Twitter users once forced Connor to come out publicly as bi, against his will. But the young man remains undeterred, supported by his colleagues on the show and, most importantly, by Joe Locke.

'We were all very proud of him, and we're proud of him controlling the narrative… I'm very proud of him for doing his own thing and what was right for him,' Joe said.

Although the actors went off on their own after the second season to star in new projects (for example, before the SAG strike, Locke went to Atlanta to shoot Agatha: Coven of Chaos), they stay in touch and continue to support each other.

'I know that he cares for me and that I can rely on him, and I know that he can rely on me,' Connor said. 'It's really just bonded us together. And I love him.'

Locke also spoke warmly of Connor: 'He's a very, very brave man, in more ways than anyone in the public eye could understand. I love him lots.'

Season 2 of Heartstopper was released on August 3, and both installments are available on Netflix. As for the show's renewal, the official announcement will not come soon, as almost the entire industry is at a standstill these days due to the ongoing WGA and SAG strikes.

Source: Teen Vogue.